Where the Heart Is (Decorating for Valentine’s Day)

Looking for Valentine’s Day inspiration? Simple, white accents are perfect for celebrating the holiday of love.

I confess that I live in a constant state of tension. Creating a beautiful home can sometimes get in the way of creating a beautiful home.

And no, that’s not a typo.

What I mean is that the whole point of a beautiful home is that it contribute to a beautiful life within the home. And no amount of perfectly placed throw pillows or fancy wreaths or designer furniture actually promises that.

Do I think that a lovely, clean, purposefully decorated home can contribute to a peaceful family life? Sure. But can it get in the way sometimes, too? Absolutely. It can be easy (for me, at least) to take my focus off of creating a beautiful space for my family to thrive and onto making my home “perfect.” For me, it takes a main dish of intentionality, with a side of flexibility, to keep myself on track.

In fact, I think most of life is like that. Reaching goals. Parenting. Growing. Loving. All of it requires intentionality balanced with flexibility. And Valentine’s Day is no exception. So I’m teaming up with a few other bloggers today to share some Valentine’s Day decor. But not just that. To share some encouragement with you (and ourselves!) to show love to others in a special way this month.

“We love because He first loved us…”

While I’m not usually one for much Valentine’s decorating, I have the privilege of hosting a ladies’ evening for my church next week, so the house did get a few sweet touches throughout, and I love that they can act as a tangible reminder of His love for us as well as our love for others.

I don’t have it in myself to love well, but by the grace of God, I believe I can. So I am celebrating this holiday of love by committing to share the love with others. For me, that needs to start close to home. I shared at the New Year that I have been struggling with being so busy that I don’t have any space in my life to just “be” with my loved ones. So this month, I am putting a special focus on not multi-tasking my way through my days with my children. I want to be fully present when we do their homework, make dinner together, write their Valentines, and more. I also want to show them that we care about others, so I have a few plans up my sleeve, like buying lunch for the person behind me in line at Chickfila.

What do you think? Would you like to join us? How would you like to share the love this month?

SO beautifully said, Rachel! I 100% agree. I’m working on that flexibility and not-so-much-multitasking thing. Your home is always gorgeous, friend. Makes me wish we lived closer and could have mommy playdates and sip coffee together at that inviting kitchen table of yours. 🙂 Hugs!